Troms, NorwayMagnetic latitude 67.2°Population 41,91513 m above sea level
Northern lights in Tromsø
Tromsø sits right under the auroral oval: on clear, dark nights the aurora is often overhead, even when activity is quiet. Clouds matter far more than the Kp number here.
Right now
It is still light here. Darkness starts at 19:09.
Updates every minute while this page is open.
Tonight in one minute
Not tonight
- Solar activity Strong enough: Kp 2.7 expected, 0 needed here.
- Sky Overcast (93% cloud).
- Darkness Dark from 19:09 to 05:51.
What to do: Not tonight — your next chance is shown just below.
- Detailed forecast Fri 16 2.7 Possible · Kp 2.7
- Sat 17 1.7 Possible · Kp 1.7
- Sun 18 1.7 Possible · Kp 1.7
- 27-day trend Mon 19 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Tue 20 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Wed 21 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Thu 22 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Fri 23 4 Possible · Kp 4
- Sat 24 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Sun 25 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Mon 26 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Tue 27 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Wed 28 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Thu 29 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Fri 30 5 Possible · Kp 5
- Sat 31 5 Possible · Kp 5
- Sun 1 5 Possible · Kp 5
- Mon 2 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Tue 3 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Wed 4 2 Possible · Kp 2
- Thu 5 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Fri 6 3 Possible · Kp 3
- Sat 7 3 Possible · Kp 3
Wednesday 21 October — Possible · Kp 4 · best around 23:30 · Forecast cloud: 66%. · Reliability: low (rough trend)
Each box is one night: the colour shows the chance, the number the expected Kp. Tap a night for details.
📅 Add these nights to your calendar — it updates itself (.ics)
How far ahead can the northern lights be forecast?
- Minutes to an hour: satellites 1.5 million km away measure the solar wind before it reaches Earth. This is the surest warning — the “Right now” box uses it.
- 1–3 days: when the Sun throws out a cloud of particles, it takes one to three days to arrive. NOAA's 3-hourly forecast covers these nights; the timing can still be off by a few hours.
- 4–27 days: the Sun turns once every 27 days, and regions that disturbed Earth's field last time often do it again. NOAA's 27-day outlook gives this rough trend — new eruptions are not in it yet.
Tonight
Updated 15:43 local time
Unlikely
Best around 02:00. Forecast max Kp 2.7 (this place needs 0), average cloud 93%.
- Dark enough
- 19:09 – 05:51
- Sunset
- 16:58 · sunrise 08:03
- Moon
- 31%
- Kp neededKp index: a 0–9 measure of geomagnetic activity. The higher it is, the further from the poles the aurora reaches.
- Kp 0
- Look towards
- north (354°)
Clearer skies nearby tonight
Tonight's cloud forecast is similar in every direction within 100 km (93% here), so driving is unlikely to help.
MET Norway forecast at 24 points within 100 km, averaged over the dark hours. Check roads and conditions before driving.
Score = activity (NOAA Kp and OVATION) × clear sky (MET Norway) × darkness × moonlight. Methodology
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What you would see from Tromsø
Facing north. Bands show where the aurora sits at two activity levels.
| Kp | What you see | Lower edge | Ray tops | Distance to the aurora |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Overhead and all around | – | – | – |
| 2 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 3 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 4 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 5 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 6 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 7 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 8 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
| 9 | Overhead, and also to the south | – | – | – |
The Kp scale in plain words
Kp is a 0–9 score for how strongly the Earth's magnetic field is being shaken by the solar wind. The higher it goes, the further from the poles the northern lights reach. Kp 0–2 is a quiet night; Kp 5 and above is a geomagnetic storm.
- Kp 0–2 Quiet eye in Tromsø Only under the auroral oval: northern Norway, Swedish and Finnish Lapland, Iceland, Alaska, northern Canada.
- Kp 3 Unsettled next 24 h Bright in the Arctic; low on the horizon in central Scandinavia and southern Iceland.
- Kp 4 Active Overhead in the Arctic; low in the north from southern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northern Scotland.
- Kp 5 Minor storm (G1) Scotland, southern Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the northern US states and southern Canada.
- Kp 6 Moderate storm (G2) Northern England, Denmark, northern Germany and Poland, the US Midwest — often clearer in photos than to the eye.
- Kp 7 Strong storm (G3) Most of the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Czechia; red glow in photos from France and the northern Alps.
- Kp 8 Severe storm (G4) Central Europe to the eye; red sky in photos from northern Italy, Spain, the Balkans and Turkey's Black Sea coast.
- Kp 9 Extreme storm (G5) Seen across Europe and the US; in photos as far south as the Mediterranean, Turkey and North Africa (May 2024).
Light pollution
Suburban sky. Noticeable sky glow. Bright displays are visible, but driving out of town makes a clear difference.
A noticeably darker area starts about 10 km to the south-west. Open in OpenStreetMap
Estimate from NASA VIIRS night-light data (sky-glow model within 50 km). Check access and private land before you go.
Hills and mountains
The terrain rises to about 6° above the horizon towards the north. That hides low aurora: here you need about Kp 0 instead of Kp 0. A hilltop, shore or open field with a clear view to the north helps.
From elevation data (AWS Terrain Tiles) along seven lines of sight up to 30 km.
Best months to see the aurora in Tromsø
Share of nights 2005–2025 that were dark, active enough here and mostly clear.
September has been the best month (20% of nights), followed by October (19%).
| Month | Good nights | Clear nights | Darkness | Low / high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 20% | 21% | 5.4 h | 7° / 10°C |
| October | 19% | 19% | 10.3 h | 3° / 6°C |
| November | 17% | 17% | 13.9 h | 0° / 3°C |
| December | 14% | 14% | 15.6 h | -2° / 1°C |
| January | 17% | 17% | 14.9 h | -4° / -1°C |
| February | 14% | 14% | 11.6 h | -4° / -1°C |
| March | 13% | 13% | 7.6 h | -3° / 0°C |
| April | 7% | 27% | 0.9 h | 0° / 2°C |
Darkness through the year
- No full darkness (Sun 12° below the horizon) from 11 April to 1 September — the sky stays too bright for most auroras.
- Midnight sun from 19 May to 24 July.
- Polar night from 29 November to 13 January: the sun stays below the horizon, giving the longest viewing windows.
- Next new moon 9 November, next full moon 26 October. The darkest skies are in the week around new moon.
Aurora nights in Tromsø since 1995
Nights when Kp reached 4.7 or more while it was dark here.
Most recent strong nights
- 10 October 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 4 October 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 3 April 2026 · Kp 5.7
- 22 March 2026 · Kp 6.7
- 20 March 2026 · Kp 7.0
- 13 March 2026 · Kp 6.0
- 3 March 2026 · Kp 5.0
- 22 February 2026 · Kp 5.3
Where to watch near Tromsø
-
Telegrafbukta
A beach park at the southern tip of Tromsøya, facing away from the city lights and reachable on foot or by bus. · about 3 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Prestvannet
A lake on the island's high ground above the centre, where the open water and surrounding trails cut down glare from the city. · about 3 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Fjellstua (Fjellheisen upper station)
Reached by cable car from Tromsdalen, it gives an elevated panorama over the city and fjords. · about 3 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Ersfjordbotn
A fjord head on Kvaløya ringed by steep peaks, with dark skies and reflections on calm nights. · about 20 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Grøtfjord
A north-facing bay and beach on outer Kvaløya with an open view over the sea. · about 35 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
-
Sommarøy
An island fishing village on the outer coast, far from Tromsø's light pollution, with open western sea views. · about 57 km · Open in OpenStreetMap
Local knowledge
- Tromsø lies inside the auroral zone and is Northern Norway's main hub for northern lights trips, with many daily flights; Tromsø Airport is about 5 km from the centre.
- The climate is coastal and very mild for the latitude because of the ice-free Norwegian Sea, but coastal cloud often hides the sky, so be ready to drive inland or out to Kvaløya chasing clear gaps.
- The aurora season runs from late August to early April; the polar night lasts from roughly late November to mid-January.
- In January the city hosts both the Tromsø International Film Festival and Nordlysfestivalen (the Northern Lights Festival, a classical music festival).
- Winter is very busy, so Visit Norway suggests autumn for a quieter aurora trip.
Do not walk in the road or stop where you block traffic, such as on blind bends; give way to local traffic and watch for reindeer and elk.
Rest areas are used by lorry drivers for legally required rest, so keep noise down, light no fires there, and stay out of private gardens and land.
Winter roads on Kvaløya are icy and dark, so drive to the conditions and check road status before chasing.
Practical information
- Nearest airport
- Tromsø Airport (TOS) · 4 km
- Typical low / high in September
- 7° / 10°C
- What to wear
- Cool nights: layers, a windproof jacket, hat and gloves for standing still outside. Full clothing guide
- Emergency number
- 112 (police), 113 (ambulance), 110 (fire)
- Winter driving
- Winter tyres need at least 3 mm of tread from 1 November to the first Sunday after Easter Monday (16 October to 30 April in Nordland, Troms and Finnmark). Studded tyres are allowed in the same periods and outside them when conditions require. Road conditions are on Statens vegvesen's traffic information service (vegvesen.no/trafikk). Road conditions
- Access to land
- Allemannsretten gives free access to uncultivated land (utmark) such as forest, mountain and shoreline; cultivated land and yards (innmark) need the owner's consent. Overnight stays, including tents, motorhomes and vans, must be more than 150 m from an inhabited house or cabin, and you may stay at most two nights in one spot without permission.
- Official space-weather service
- Norwegian Centre for Space Weather (NOSWE), Tromsø Geophysical Observatory, UiT
- Weather service
- Norwegian Meteorological Institute (Yr)
Questions and answers
What Kp do you need to see the aurora in Tromsø?
Tromsø sits right under the auroral oval: on clear, dark nights the aurora is often overhead, even when activity is quiet. Clouds matter far more than the Kp number here.
Which way should I look for the aurora in Tromsø?
Around Tromsø the aurora is often right overhead. Start by facing north, but look up and all around — in strong storms it can fill the whole sky and even appear behind you.
What is the best month to see the aurora in Tromsø?
Over 2005–2025, September gave the best odds in Tromsø (20% of nights dark, active enough and mostly clear), followed by October (19%).
When is the aurora season in Tromsø?
From 11 April to 1 September the sky in Tromsø never gets dark enough. Outside that period the aurora can be seen whenever activity and clouds allow.
Is there much light pollution in Tromsø?
Noticeable sky glow. Bright displays are visible, but driving out of town makes a clear difference. A noticeably darker area starts about 10 km to the south-west.
When was the aurora last possible in Tromsø?
Activity last reached storm level (Kp 5 or more) during darkness in Tromsø on 10 October 2026 (Kp 7.0) — 737 such nights since 1995. Here the aurora also appears on many quieter nights.
Also covered by this forecast
Villages and districts around Tromsø share its forecast: within a few kilometres the sky, the Kp needed and the best direction are the same.
- Guleng 0 km
- Hungeren 1 km
- Myreng 1 km
- Forhåpningen 1 km
- Elverhøy 1 km
- Langnes 2 km
- Åsgård 2 km
- Breivika 2 km
- Bjerkaker 2 km
- Stalheim 2 km
- Håpet 3 km
- Breidvika 3 km
- Lanes 4 km
- Kaldsletta 4 km
- Bjorvik 4 km
- Sjømannsbyen 4 km
- Kuberg 5 km
- Håkøy 5 km
- Sletta 6 km
- Marisletta 6 km
- Finnes 6 km
- Hamna 6 km
- Tisnes 7 km
- Storelva 7 km
- Lanes 8 km
- Nordbotn 8 km
- Sjurdnes 9 km
- Håkøybotn 9 km
- Kaldfjord 9 km
- Slåttnes 10 km
- Nygård 10 km
- Larseng 11 km
- Sjurelv 11 km
- Holmesletta 11 km
- Sandvika 12 km
- Henrikvik 12 km
- Vikran 13 km
- Bakke 13 km
- Skavberg 13 km
- Ersfjord 14 km